So I'm an orphan.

Never really met my parents.

All I was told was that they were merchants originally from the land of lightning. Some jonin from the leaf was returning from a mission and found their carriage that was attacked with both my parents killed and I was hidden away.

To this day I have no idea who named me. There is no clan with the name Ichimaru in the land of fire or lightning. It might have been some random ninja who just wrote down a name when I was added to the orphanage. It doesn't really bother me. The past is in the past, I would rather just focus on my future as a ninja.

"96...97...98...99...100." I finished counting my pushups and moved on to the sit-ups. Ever since I entered the academy and found out how behind I was the other students I had to do something to catch up. I went to the leaf library and found some physical training scrolls. I have since done 100 pushups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10km run every day.

As I finished my sit-ups and my squats I headed out to start my run. I was currently wearing a plain white shirt along with blue shorts and the standard shinobi sandals. I run to training ground 44; otherwise known as the Forest of Death. I am simply going to run one lap around it seeing as it is 10km in radius.

As I reach the middle point I spot a chunin inside the forest. He was currently fighting a giant boar, but the thing that caught my eye was that the chunin was somehow able to stand on the trees with the soles of his feet.

"I wonder how he's doing that... wait a minute that's Kazuto sensei." I am kind of surprised. I never thought he did anything but teach our class. "HEYYY OVER HERE KAZUTO SENSEI IT'S ME YATO." I yell and try to get his attention. He noticed me and quickly used a wind jutsu that decapitated the boar.

As I was about to call him again he suddenly vanished and and appeared on the other side of the fence right where I am at. I will admit it caught me by surprise. "Woah how did you do that?" I asked startled. "It's called the Body Flicker Jutsu. You will learn its basics in your final year. Anyway, what are you doing here Yato?" He asks back with a raised eyebrow. "Sensei how were you able to stick to the trees with your feet like that?" I ask hoping for him to teach me.

"Don't worry about it right now. Like I said you will learn how to do it in your last year in the academy." He replied in a matter of fact. I looked at him with a blank face."This is my last year in the academy, Minato and I are going to attempt to graduate early by the end of this year." He looked at me surprised and asked." Both of you? Have you both achieved the requirements to graduate?"

"Yes. We can both do the transformation jutsu, we can summon up to 6 clones, we can perform the substitution jutsu, and can hold the leaf for two hours."

He looked surprised because we just started learning about the basics this year and were not expected to do them until the end of next year. He then looks at me with understanding and says to bring Minato to training ground three after class today.

"If you two are going to become genin you will need more than the basics that are taught at the academy. Although you are both proficient with taijutsu you are still weak. I will train you for the remainder of the year every day after class." He informed me in a tone that left no room for discussion.

"If by the end of this year, I am not satisfied with both your levels of skill you will not take the graduation exam."

Before I have a chance to object he continues. "You two are lacking in your foundation. Your basics need to be improved. The world of shinobi is no game Yato. If you are weak you die, if you are strong you live. Never forget that. Since you two want to graduate early then I will have to teach you what I would teach the others in the remaining three years in just one year. You will need to learn the tree walking exercise to improve your chakra control. You will need to be proficient in the body flicker jutsu because it can be the meaning between life and death, and you will need to figure out what your chakra nature is and learn some rank E and maybe rand D jutsu." He stated with a firm tone and serious look on his face.

"I never thought that there was so much we had to do. I always thought that we just had to learn what was on the exam to graduate." I look to Kazuto sensei and bow to him. "Sensei please guide us to the best of your abilities and we will do our best to live up to your expectations." I tell him in a respectful tone.

He nods and says "I will drill the basics into both of you. After that, it's up to your jonin sensei to take your training to the next level."

I thank Kazuo sensei and continue on my run until I reach my house. I wash up and make breakfast before heading out to class.

As I took my seat next to Minato, we had a few minutes before class started. I tell him about what Kazuto sensei told me this morning. He just smiles and looks at me.

"We can do it Yato. We can pass sensei's test and then he will let us take the graduation exam." He says to me with a look of confidence in both our abilities.

As class finished for the day, Minato noticed that Kushina was not here and a sad look formed on his face. I knew what he was thinking about and I took the chance to tease him again. "It's ok Minato don't worry about it so much. You will have another chance to confess your undying love to Kushina." His face gets red and we rush over to training ground three. We see Kazuto sensei already waiting for us. Minato was a little shocked as to how he was already here.

"Don't worry he will teach us how he does it." I let Minato know.

"Since you two want to be genin I will train you like genin. Your chakra control is not very impressive. Being able to hold the leaf for 2 hours is a great feat; for an academy student. To be a genin you need a lot better chakra control than what you have now. As to how you will do that is where those trees come in. Here." He explained as he threw two kunai at our feet.

"First you will need to learn the tree walking exercise. It's in the name, you will walk on trees using just your feet. Concentrate your chakra on the soles of your feet and then place one foot on the tree. Try and find the balance in your chakra. If you use too much you will break the surface of the tree and fall. If you use too little you will slip and fall. Use the kunai to mark how far you go up the tree every time you are about to fall. Today is Monday, you have one week to reach the very top of the trees, get to it. And try not to die from the fall." He instructed as he vanished.

We both concentrate our chakra to the bottom of our feet and start climbing our respective trees. It takes me five steps before the wood under my foot breaks from using too much chakra. I marked where I was before I fell and managed to land on my feet. It takes Minato about five steps more than me and he's free-falling.

Minato and I share a look of determination. We nod to each other and start climbing. We try to master this technique even before our deadline so we can see what Kazuto sensei has for us next.

I look at Minato as he is now up to 18 steps and I am at 12.
'I won't let him beat me. I will not let the gap between us widen.' I thought with a burning fire in my eyes as I climbed to reach where Minato was currently.

I consider this man my rival and I will not be left behind. I can do this; I know I can. I soon settle where Minato is; both of us at 18 steps with a lot more to go to reach the summit of this massive tree.

/

Just curious how many people actually read this. Plz leave a thumbs up in the comments so I know that someone is reading what I am writing. If you have any comments, or anything just let me know. I am trying to rush up the graduation a bit but I still need to get their basics out of the way. It may take like maybe 2 more chapters or but no more than 3. thx and enjoy.